A chaotic week around college football gives heightened stakes to Saturday’s rivalry matchup between James Madison and Richmond.

Because Dartmouth and New Hampshire are the only Div-I football programs in the state of New Hampshire, and are separated by less than a two-hour drive, you might assume the Big Green and Wildcats play each other every year. That would be an incorrect assumption.

The top half of the Gulf South Conference used Week 6 to create separation from the bottom half, and the emphatic results make for a Week 7 with high stakes.

Mark Ferrante knew the stakes of the call when he decided to go for it on fourth-and-one from his team’s own 29-yard line. But the Villanova coach’s players gave him no choice.

Towson traveled across the country its last time out, completing a first month that Tigers coach Rob Ambrose called “a meat grinder” against nationally ranked FBS opponent San Diego State.

The University of Massachusetts football program has lost 16 games in a row. Connecticut has lost its last 10 games, and 30 of its last 31 outings against FBS opponents.

When a team rallies from a halftime deficit in college football, among the first questions a reporter asks of a head coach is invariably, What did you say to the guys in the locker room?

In case a reminder was necessary, Week 5 reemphasized the hyper-competitive nature of the Colonial Athletic Association.

New Hampshire was roughed up by Pittsburgh 77-7 last weekend, and the task won’t be much easier for the Wildcats when they face third-ranked James Madison during Homecoming Weekend on Saturday.

An unfortunate reality of thrilling football games dictates that for a team to win, another has to lose. Elon and Richmond both ended up on the wrong side of this reality in their respective Colonial Athletic Association openers, with the Phoenix’s rally from down 21 points to William & Mary falling just short; and Richmond exchanging big leads with Villanova in a wild Week 3 contest.

From unranked to start the season to the top 15 of the poll, both West Alabama and West Georgia have made emphatic statements to start the 2021 season.

Perhaps the most interesting question entering Saturday’s Colonial Athletic Association matchup between Albany and Delaware is this: Who will start at quarterback for the eighth-ranked Blue Hens?

Shadows over the Dignity Health Sports Park turf lengthened as the sun made its descent toward the Pacific horizon, commensurate with a good San Diego State team overshadowing the upset hopes of visiting Towson.

The last two Colonial Athletic Association teams to begin their conference schedules meet in Week 4, with each bringing a contrasting style.

If the first game of Gulf South Conference play is any indication, buckle in for an incredible season.